For some the big discussion is...should we get a 'portable dvd player" or just spend more money a get a laptop that will play our dvd movies?
There are definitely some good arguments for both sides of this discussion. So let's run through some of the positives for both sides of this earth-shattering-topic (some humor).
For many, the biggest reason we use to base many of our decisions on is simply over the dollars that we'll have to spend. By far and away portable dvd players are cheaper to buy over a laptop...BIG PLUS to portable players. If you aren't to picky about the type of laptop you need, other than playing movies, you could possibly buy second-hand which would bring the price down considerably. Some would argue that you should never buy a laptop second-hand, I'm still not sure what side of the fence I sit on for that topic.
Would you even use a laptop for reasons other than playing movies? If you're not into spending much time on the computer or don't have a great need to be on the computer very often, then why incur the cost of purchasing a laptop. For some though, having the extra features that a laptop offers over a portable-dvd-player, could come in very handy, especially on a long trip. Laptops could come in handy for school projects, business, and load of other things.
Do you have kids? If yes, are you willing to let them use a laptop that could cost many hundreds of dollars more than a portable dvd player. I've got young kids who I let use the portable dvd player we have, but I'm not so sure I'd be willing to let young kids use an expensive new laptop freely. Definitely something worth considering.
Portable dvd players have come down in price drastically over the past few years, it's not a huge out of pocket expense, definitely an easier purchase to handle over a laptop. My opinion is that it's worth buying the portable dvd player and down the road, if you need a laptop for yourself, you can go out and get it.
Who knows, maybe I'll turn into some on-the-go business guy that needs a laptop, but for now, I'm really happy with a portable dvd player and my bank account is happier too.
